System and method for wind blade inspection, repair and upgrade

Abstract

A system and method for inspecting, repairing and upgrading wind turbine rotor blades of a wind turbine. The system including deploying one or more cables via an unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV), a balloon, a ballistic mechanism or a catapult to position the one or more cables in draping engagement with a portion of the wind turbine. A climbing robot is positioned to ascend the one or more cables and perform a task related to inspecting for indications, repair of indications or upgrading the rotor blade. A slave robot system, disposed at the base location and anchored to the one or more cables, provides modulation of the cables for positioning of the climbing robot relative to the wind turbine as it ascends and descends the one or more cables. After completion of the task, the climbing robot descends the one or more cables and the cables are removed from the wind turbine.

Description

BACKGROUND[0001]The embodiments described herein relate generally to wind turbines, and more specifically, to systems and methods for inspecting, repairing and / or upgrading wind turbines.[0002]Wind power is considered one of the cleanest, most environmentally friendly energy sources presently available, and wind turbines have gained increased attention in this regard. A modern wind turbine typically includes a tower, generator, gearbox, nacelle, and one or more rotor blades. The rotor blades capture kinetic energy of wind using known foil principles. The rotor blades transmit the kinetic energy in the form of rotational energy to turn a shaft coupling the rotor blades to a gearbox, or if a gearbox is not used, directly to the generator. The generator then converts the mechanical energy to electrical energy that may be deployed to a utility grid.[0003]Wind turbine blades are typically precisely designed and manufactured to efficiently transfer wind energy into rotational motion, ther...

AI Technical Summary

Benefits of technology

This patent describes a system for inspecting, repairing and upgrading wind turbines. The system includes cables that are positioned on the wind turbine, a climbing robot that can ascend and repair the cables, and a slave robot system that can position the climbing robot. The cables are anchored to a base location and the system uses modulation to position the climbing robot and allow it to inspect, repair and upgrade the wind turbine. The method also includes deploying cables to the rotor blade of the wind turbine and using the system to inspect, repair and upgrade it. The invention enables efficient and safe inspection, repair and upgrade of wind turbines and their components.

Problems solved by technology

Unfortunately, during operation, debris (e.g., dirt, bugs, sea salt, etc.) is collected on the blades, thereby altering the shape and degrading the smoothness.

In addition, rocks or other fragments may scratch or erode the blades upon contact.

Furthermore, the presence of leading edge erosion and lightning damage may affect blade shape and surface smoothness, thus having an impact on blade efficiency.

However, manual blade maintenance is time consuming and expensive, and is therefore generally performed at longer than desired time intervals.

Consequently, wind turbines may operate in an inefficient manner for significant periods.

In addition, environmental conditions may preclude the ability for humans to access the wind turbine to perform such tasks.

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